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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29046597">He'll Be Home</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/casey_writes_domestic_fluff/pseuds/casey_writes_domestic_fluff'>casey_writes_domestic_fluff</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Becoming Us [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Supernatural</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Amara is God, Canon Compliant, Canon Universe, Castiel Gets a Hug (Supernatural), Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Castiel and Dean Winchester are Jack Kline's Parents, Castiel is Jack Kline's Parent, Child Neglect, Dean Winchester Gets Therapy, Dean Winchester Gets a Hug, Dean Winchester Has Abandonment Issues, Dean Winchester Has Daddy Issues, Dean Winchester Has Healthy Coping Skills, Dean Winchester Has Self-Worth Issues, Dean Winchester Has Trust Issues, Dean Winchester Just Wants To Be A Househusband, Dean Winchester is Jack Kline's Parent, Domestic Dean Winchester, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Family Dynamics, Ficlet, Fix-It, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Happy Jack Kline, Jack Kline Gets a Hug, Jack calls Castiel dad, Jack calls Dean dad, Light Angst, M/M, Minor Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Fix-It, Quote: Y yo a ti Cas | Me too (Supernatural), Recovering Alcoholic Dean Winchester, and s15e19 only exists for the first 40 minutes, no beta we die like men, s15e20 Doesn't Exist</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 06:15:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,151</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29046597</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/casey_writes_domestic_fluff/pseuds/casey_writes_domestic_fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean starts to feel nauseous and a lump swells in his throat as he fights off the anxiety. He knows it's irrational, he knows Cas isn't going to leave him. He tries some of the breathing techniques his therapist taught him, (yeah, he goes to therapy, fuck you) but they’re not working. He finds his feet leading him toward his and Castiel’s bedroom, and then toward the closet. He finds his trembling hands opening the drawer and rifling through the piles of flannel to find it. The last bottle of whiskey left in the house. </p><p>- - - </p><p>Or, the one where Dean struggles with his anxiety but he refuses to break down. He has to stay strong, not just for his family, but for himself.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Castiel/Dean Winchester</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Becoming Us [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2138406</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>168</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>He'll Be Home</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Quick world-building summary: </p><p>PRE-SERIES<br/>- 15x20 does not exist. Fuck you.<br/>- 15x19 mostly exists except:<br/>- Michael is in on the Winchesters' plan to trick Chuck<br/>- Right before Chuck smites him, he stands defiantly in front of him and says, "You know me. When I love, I love<br/>hard."<br/>- Jack still "vacuums" up Chuck's power but instead of just fucking disappearing (what the fuck was that shit), he gives it to Amara (who is back in her own corporeal form, thank you very much)<br/>- Amara is actually a super badass God and she rebuilds heaven like it is in 15x20<br/>- She brings Cas back. Fucking obviously.<br/>- As soon as Dean sees him, he's runs to him and holds him close and tells him he's loves him. It's sappy and adorable and gay.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>18 Months Post-Canon</strong>
</p><p>Jack and Cas had been gone for two days, running some errands for Amara up in Heaven. Once Jack gave her all of the light power, she took her job as God very seriously—moreso than Chuck ever had. She’s been feeling kind of overwhelmed, honestly, so Cas and Jack have been helping out when they can. Dean was proud for it, proud that he had a family who would work so hard to bring change to the world, but he had to admit that he missed them when they were away. Especially now that Sam had moved in with Eileen. </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean tries not to think about how quiet the bunker had become, particularly when the boys are away. He turns up his music to drown out the loneliness, the abandonment anxiety creeping up on him. He flutters about nervously, peaking in on the lasagna, worried it'll dry out if he left it in the oven much longer. He turns the radio off. </p><p>
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</p><p>"Hey Cas," he whispers awkwardly. "I know you're busy up there and all but you said you'd be home for dinner tonight and umm, dinner is ready, so uhh, yeah. When you get the chance or whatever. I'll just… wait here then." </p><p>
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</p><p>In the few seconds of crippling silence that follow, Dean feels the anxiety bubble up in his throat like bile. He knows that Cas would never leave him, at least not without some sort of catalyst, but he can't help but worry. </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean’s never felt safe in a relationship before. Not just romantically speaking. As a child, love was doled out to him like stickers, a reward for good behaviour, for obedience. And as though it were a physical object, it could be taken away at any given moment. </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean starts to feel nauseous and a lump swells in his throat as he fights off the anxiety. He knows it's irrational, he knows Cas isn't going to leave him. He tries some of the breathing techniques his therapist taught him, (yeah, he goes to therapy, fuck you) but they’re not working. He finds his feet leading him toward his and Castiel’s bedroom, and then toward the closet. He finds his trembling hands opening the drawer and rifling through the piles of flannel to find it. The last bottle of whiskey left in the house. </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean was never exactly an alcoholic, or at least that’s what he tells himself, but he admits he had an unhealthy relationship with the bottle. It got pretty bad one night when Dean got plastered on his one year anniversary with Cas. Neither of them like to talk about what happened, but suffice it to say that the next day, Cas told Jack they were going on a trip to Disney World because he’d been doing such a good job with his heavenly duties. The minute they left, Dean got in the Impala and drove to his first ever AA meeting. He threw away all the alcohol in the house, except that one bottle of whiskey. He couldn’t bring himself to throw it out. He needed to feel like he had the option of drinking, of falling back on his oldest habit if things got too tough. He hovers there, bottle in hand, thinking about Cas and Jack and the life they’d built together. He thinks about how alone he feels when they’re gone, how scared he gets when they’re not back on time. He just <em>knows</em> they’ve left him for good this time. He just <em>knows</em> it. </p><p>
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</p><p>He breaks the seal and inhales deeply. He thought he’d missed the smell, the burn in his eyes with his face right over the bottle, but now, it just made him feel sick. He thinks of how lonely he feels now and he just knows that if he takes a sip, he’ll feel that lonely forever. If he falls backward, he will lose his family, and it will be his fault. </p><p>
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</p><p>He walks back to the kitchen and pours the bottle down the drain. When it’s about halfway empty… </p><p>
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</p><p>The flutter of wings. </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean turns around to see Cas and Jack standing in the doorway to the kitchen. </p><p>
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</p><p>"Hello, Dean." At those words, the tears Dean had so valiantly fought back come flooding back up to the surface. He drops the bottle in the sink, ignoring the deafening crash, and sprints the few steps to Castiel. He wraps his arms tightly around his shoulders, pressing his cheek firmly against Castiel's. Cas picks him up by the waist and spins him around like they're in some stupid romcom and Dean will deny it to his dying breath but he giggles like a schoolgirl. </p><p>
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</p><p>Cas eases him back onto his feet. "I missed you," Dean whispers. </p><p>
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</p><p>Cas presses their foreheads together and whispers, "Y yo a ti." </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean blushes—he's always had an… interest in Castiel's lingual abilities—but before he can get too carried away, Jack inadvertently reminds the couple of his presence by asking, "Can I have a hug, too?" </p><p>
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</p><p>A year ago, Dean would have scoffed. He always thought he wasn't a hugger, not unless there was an apocalypse on the horizon, but now? </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean wraps his arms around the small boy and ruffles his hair. Jack giggles into his chest and <em>that</em>, that right there. That is the thing that keeps Dean's world turning. </p><p>
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</p><p>"What's for dinner?" Jack asks when he pulls away. </p><p>
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</p><p>"Lasagna and garlic bread, and some stupid kale salad thing Sam sent me the recipe for." </p><p>
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</p><p>Jack makes a face at the salad and Dean pretends to sympathise but… well, can you keep a secret? Sam didn't actually send him the recipe. Dean looked it up himself because he wanted to make sure Jack was getting enough vegetables, even though he was pretty sure being a celestial being kind of nullified the importance of a balanced diet. </p><p>
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</p><p>Cas gives him a knowing look but says nothing. He sniffs the air once and smirks. Damn angel powers gave away Dean's surprise. Castiel smirks at Dean. </p><p>
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</p><p>"I thought you said it was an abomination?" </p><p>
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</p><p>"It is. I mean, really, what kind of monster calls a cake <em>pie</em>. Really man, wait to get my hopes up." </p><p>
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</p><p>"I thought you liked both cake <em>and</em> pie," Cas quips. </p><p>
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</p><p>"Wait, what about cake?" Jack interrupts, oblivious to Castiel’s increasing understanding of the double entendre. </p><p>
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</p><p>"Why don't you check the refrigerator, Jack," Dean suggests. </p><p>
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</p><p>Jack opens the fridge door and shouts, "Boston Cream Pie! My favourite!" </p><p>
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</p><p>Dean huffs a laugh. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. You gotta eat dinner first though, alright?" </p><p>
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</p><p>Jack doesn't even respond, just throws his arms around Dean's waist once more and mumbles, "Thanks, Dad," into his chest. And this is all Dean ever wanted. A family. A home. He looks at Cas over Jack's shoulder and he knows this love is safe. He is safe and he always will be.</p><p>
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hi y'all! This was written as a one-shot to help me cope with the finale (DEAN JUST WANTED TO BE A HOUSEHUSBAND OK WHY WOULDNT YALL JUST LET HIM BE A HOUSEHUSBAND *sobs violently*) but if y'all like it, let me know and I can write some more. I kind of set up for a hurt/comfort story about Dean and Cas' first anniversary so if y'all are interested, comment below :)))</p></blockquote></div></div>
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